(Representative image)CHENNAI: With more than 5,000 MBBS/BDS seats left vacant across several deemed universities after three rounds of centralised counselling by the Directorate-General of Health Services (DGHS), the Supreme Court on Monday increased the time for admissions by a week to September 7.

Directorate also sent the rank list drawn up nearly 50,000 NEET qualified candidates as the apex court had said it should maintain the 1:10 ratio. In case of deficit, the universities can draw more names from the larger NEET list.“As long as the seat which has fallen vacant, the ratio is maintained at 1:10, we do not perceive any difficulty. If the 1:10 ratio is not sufficient, the DGHS is granted liberty to get into the larger NEET list,” said the order issued by a three bench judge headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra.

This year, the SC made NEET mandatory for all medical and dental admissions. It also said that the admission for students to deemed universities will be done based on the NEET-based rank list drawn up by the DGHS. “This time we conducted counselling simultaneously for all India quota seats in government colleges and for deemed universities. Many students who locked deemed universities as their option did join them in all the three rounds probably because they got admissions elsewhere or felt it was too expensive,” said a senior official in DGHS.

On Monday, the DGHS announced that there were 5,226 seats vacant in colleges across the country, including 947 in the state. The central body conducted two rounds of counselling and one mop-up session. While across the country there was a 30% reduction in seats, only 20% seats were taken from colleges in Tamil Nadu.

Sree Balaji Medical College had 206 or the 250 seats vacant. While 42 seats from the management quota were taken away, the seats in NRI quota remained untouched. At the ACS Medical College 146 of the 150 seats were vacant. While four seats from the management quota were taken, here too seats in NRI quota remained untouched. There were 130 in Meenakshi Medical College, 127 seats in Chettinad Medical College and Research Institute, 98 seats in SRM medical college, 76 seats in Sri Ramachandra University and 77 seats in Saveetha Medical College.

Most colleges said they would call for applications from interested candidates. “Rank list will be drawn from the applicants. Toppers whose names all figure in all India merit are eligible to apply,” a senior official from Sri Ramachandra University said.